Crawford avalanche., 1887-04-14
-UHIUAGU BOODLERS.
How They Did Business--A Bottom
less Artesian Well--0ver 500
Indictments.
The Members or the Grand Jury As.
tOnished ut the County Rot.
tenness.

The indictments recently found against
present and former Commissioners of Cook
County number 200, and against wardens
and contractors 102. About sixty men
have been indicted. Following is partial
list County Commissioners d. j. Wren,
% indictments; j. j. Mccarthy, 20; G. O..
Klehm, 10; r.. S. McClaughrey, IA; r. M.
Oliver, IL; @. Cells, 8; @. Casselman,
8; ex- Commissioners @. +. Lynn, "a;
J. L. Van Pelt, 18; j. Hannigan,
~; M: W. Leyden, II; M. Wasser-
w. j. McGarigle, "a; II. A. varnell, 23;
=: s. Mcdonald, 8; Edward Phillips, 81;
Janitor Gunuersou, q; ruuk nrurPisy, o,
contractors j. Costelloe, IL; f. w. Bipper,
z; N. Barsaloux, B; William Harley, 2; w.
II. Gray, i; Chris. Keeling, 1; James Muir
ray. l; M. Hennessy, Il John Buckley, l.;
p. Mahoney, /; j. j. Hayes, /; L. X.
Brainerd, l; @. o. Hansen, /; l.. Il. Crane,
1; j. H. Carpenter, /; II. X. Warner, /; A.
j. Walker, i; l.. Windmueller, 1.
The thing is corrupt from top to bot
tom," said one of the late grand Jurors.
"Thero is no honesty among the Commits
sioners outside of those recently elected,
and there is no honesty among their en-
ployes and appointees. Where they can't
steal in large way they steal in small
way. An arrangement was made with
the man who sold goods. I'll give
you one instance in particular: There
was contract with q merchant to
sell goods and pay IL per cent. He had to
pay it into the hands of particular per-
son to be divided. The chairman of the
committee through which most of his bills
went called on him and made him pay
three per cent. additional for his infiu-
ence. So the merchant paid in fifteen
per cent. regularly. About once q month
the Commissioner would drive up TO his
place of business, but wouldn't come in,
and he would 60 out and hand him the
percentage in an envelope. That is the
way that was done. Most of the
business was doner through one of the
appointees who was made the collector for
the gang, and as much as $11, 900 in one
sum has been paid at one time for one con-
tract. They required the sum paid down.
The contract had been awarded, and the
regular meeting passed without action.
What Is the matterT Well, have you got
the money! or a question of that kind.
No, We cannot get it until such day.
Then you can have it. 'All right He
had it the day promised, handed the
money over, special meeting was
held, and the contract was approved
at once and signed. That was one
way of doing business. Then there
was another. One year $1,000 would be
charged for a certain thing, the next year
81 100, and the next 50, The year the
highest commission was paid was the best
year for business the man ever had. In
another case the commissions, as q rule,
were figured at 10 per cent. In one in
stance The commissions Mre not paid in
money; that is, the parties swore they never
paid dollar. But one of the gang would
want a sealskin sack. The merchants
didn't deal in them, but had connections
through which they could get one, and the
firm kept O fictitious account to which
such articles were charged, and the cost
amounted to 10 per cent, which was added
to the price of the goods sold to the coun-
ty. The transactions were not confined to
one branch of business. One house had
sold some goods to the county. They were
told, You can sell great many goods to
the county, but in order to do so you will
have TO pay 10 per cent One member of
the firm, knowing one Of the Commission
ers, felt 1T was an outrage. He went to
that Commissioner, a prominent one, con-
fident that the proposition would arouse his
the Commissioner's) ire in an instant he
told him, and the Commissioner said: Il
think you folks had better pay the COM
mission. The thing is just here. You sell
the county at your prices, charge 10 per
over, and then the county will be better
served, have better goods at less prices
than it is buying or can buy them from
Others He went back and told his part
ners, and said: we won't do anything of
the kind. We will pay no commissions to
anybody. There are cur goods, and il they
want to buy them at our prices we will sell
them, but we will not pay penny commits
sion.' That was the strongest case that
came before the jury.
"The way in which the swindling was
done was perfectly wonderful. There we're
increased prices, short weight, short count,
and short count way up into large figures. |
We didn't get at the bottom of that artesian
well. 1t is only SEQ or 400 feet deep, but
good many hundreds more were paid for. |
That was short measure with q vengeance.
A certain amount Of money was TO be paid |
on oil contracts. It would be handed to a |
person indicated. That person would hand |
1t over, or be present at meeting where |
the divvy was made. At one time Com
missioner made the collections, but the |
others became suspicious that he didn't
divvy fairly. Men swore that they were |
told they must not pay that Commissioner
any more money, but pay it to So and-so,
and they did, and they never had trouble"
One of the neatest of the many swim
dies exposed by the Grand Jury was the ar-
tesian we'll at the Infrmary. BY the terms
of the contract with w. H. Gray, the price
was to be: For the first 800 feet, $2.50 per
foot; next 400 feet, So; next 800 feet, $3.50;
next 100 feet, 81; next 100 feet, 81. so; next
200 feet, So; next 200 feet, So; next 200 |
feet, 81; next 100 feet, SO. Under the con-
tract the drilling was to stop when a good |
flow of water was found, and the maximum
depth of the we'll was placed at 2,45O feet.
Experts sent out by the Grand Jury to
measure the depth of the we'll broke the
trap that had been fixed 800 feet below the
surface, and found the actual depth of the
well to be 1857 feet At that depth lib
eral flow of water was obtained and drilling
was stopped, but bills were put in the County
Board for depth OF 2,450 feet, the maxi
mum depth called for by tho contract.
Chairman klehm once attempted to measure
the we'll. The weight would 90 down, but
in trying TO get il back the line formed it
self in long loops, and it was impossible to
do the measuring. Mr.. Klehm, though a
practical builder, did not find out the cause
of the trouble, but concluded the we'll was
rs deep as was claimed. After consider
able trouble the experts found and broke
nm arched trap, and then had no trouble
about finding out the actual depth. When
they drew out their line they found at
tached to it the one Klehm had used. On
this work the county has been saved $1,000.
Vouchers for this amount were issued, but
has been stopped.
THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION.